


Knight In Shining Armor

by also_bughead



Category: Archie Comics, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, bughead - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-04
Updated: 2017-11-11
Packaged: 2018-12-11 02:25:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11704866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/also_bughead/pseuds/also_bughead
Summary: In which Serpent Jughead defends Betty, but ends up scaring her.





	1. Chapter 1

Betty huffed, lifting the ladle and pouring the red liquid into the cheap plastic disposable cup. She didn’t think she’d ever danced so much in her life.

She wasn’t planning to go to the prom. She’d just gone through a really tough breakup, and she wasn’t really feeling up to partying. But, Veronica had begged her to come. Ronnie wanted to attend the dance, because it was a “rite of passage” but Archie couldn’t take her because he had gone to visit his mom in Chicago for her birthday. So, she’d devised a plan that she, Betty and The Pussy Cats would all go stag together: and Betty didn’t have a say.

In the end, though, Betty was glad she had gone. It was a nice distraction from all the stress that was going on in her life.

“Nice dress, Cooper,” Betty could feel his breath in her ear, and she instinctively flinched away, the hairs on the back of her neck standing up.

“T-thanks,” she mumbled, carefully placing the ladle down on the ledge of the punch bowl. “Now if you’ll excuse me—”

She attempted to maneuver around the former football player, but he blocked her way, nearly spilling her punch in the process.

“Not so fast,” Chuck eyed her up and down, eyes lingering in places that made heat rush to Betty’s cheeks. He licked his lips. “Wanna dance?”

She knew if she said no, he’d press the issue, and she really didn’t feel like causing a big scene. She gritted her teeth. “Sure. Only one song, though. I gotta get back to my friends.”

“Of course,” he took her by the wrist, pulling her out onto the dance floor.

Much to the blonde’s dismay, a slow song began to play just as they reached the center of the dance floor. She tentatively placed her hands on his intimidatingly broad shoulders, arms outstretched in an attempt to create space between them. It turned out to be a moot effort as he pulled her into him, hands at the small of her back, creeping way too low for Betty’s liking.

Jughead, like he did at most dances, sat alone on the bleachers. It wasn’t out of pathetic-ness, though. He liked to people watch. He liked to observe from the sidelines. He preferred it this way.

Tonight, though, he was admittedly watching really only one person: Betty. She looked beautiful as ever, dancing with Veronica and Josie in her deep purple dress that was breathtakingly beautiful, hugging her in all the right places before flowing out at her knees.

Why had he come here? Dances weren’t really his thing. He technically wasn’t even supposed to be here. But he’d bought the tickets back before he’d transferred schools. Before he became a Serpent. Before he’d broken Betty’s heart. But the answer was obvious: he’d wanted to see her.

While she was the reason he came, it was now the reason he wished he hadn’t; seeing her so happy without him was torture. He didn’t know which was worse: seeing her cry and knowing he was the reason, or seeing her dance and laugh and smile, as if she didn’t have a care in the world when he was still reeling from their break up.

He was going to leave. He’d had enough. He was going to drive his dad’s beat up truck home and never come back to Riverdale High again. There was nothing left for him. There’d been nothing left for him for a long time.

He stood, grabbing his keys, and was already halfway down the bleachers when she saw them. At first he felt a twinge of jealousy at the sight of Betty in Chuck’s arms, his hands wandering along her backside. Why the hell would she be dancing with him, of all people? Especially in a way that suggested that later they’d be doing more than dancing. After everything he’d done.

The jealousy, however, quickly turned to anger when he really realized what was happening. When he saw her pushing back against him, hands slapping and swatting away his as he kept groping and tugging at her ass and her dress.

His rage was blinding, causing everything he saw to be white hot, with a red tinge. He didn’t realize what he was doing until he’d pulled Betty away from him, nearly knocking her over if it weren’t for the fact that Moose was nearby to catch her, his knuckles colliding with the asshole’s nose.

Jughead braced himself for a retaliation, but to his surprise, Chuck began to laugh. “Here you go again, Jones. Defending your little Serpent Slut.” The comment earned him a second punch, which he wasn’t expecting and this time it was harder, making contact with the would-be quarter back’s jaw, hard enough to bust his lip. He clutched his chin, and Jughead delivered a third blow to his stomach, and Chuck keeled over in pain. Jughead leaned into him, speaking low at his ear.

“Do you know how easy it’d be to end you?” Chuck looked up, and the raven-haired boy reveled in the fear in his eyes. “Almost too easy. Don’t forget who I run with. Leave her alone or I swear to God, I’ll—”

“Jug?”

Jughead turned, his eyes meeting Betty’s green ones for the first time in what felt like lifetimes. They were beautiful as ever, the blue tint to them really coming out in the soft lighting. They were wide, afraid.

Betty had never seen Jughead so mad before. Sure, he’d punched Chuck on his birthday that one time, and she’d seen him get angry in their bickers, but never like this, and to be honest, it terrified her. She didn’t think he was capable of that kind of rage, that kind of intimidation.

“He’s not worth it,” she whispered.

Jughead drew in a deep breath, releasing Chuck, who quickly made his way elsewhere. He turned toward her.

“You okay?” he asked, gently rubbing up and down her arms.

“Yeah, I’m—”

“Oh my God, Betty!” Veronica gasped, and Betty turned as she pulled her into a consoling hug. “I tried to get over here when I first saw the fight start but the huddle was so dense…”

“I’m fine Ronnie, thanks to—” she pulled away, turning to reference her dark-haired protector, but was met with confusion when she found he was gone.

“C’mon, let’s get back to Josie,” the raven-haired girl pulled Betty across the room, all the while the blonde kept looking back, looking for her raven-haired knight in shining armor.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little part two in which there is a bughead reconciliation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is pretty short but it's sweet and to the point.

She laid in her bed, staring at the white popcorn ceiling of her pink bedroom.

She couldn't sleep. She'd tossed, she'd turned. She'd flipped her pillow over and over God knows how many times. But no matter what she did, Betty couldn't get the events of the dance out of her head, even though it had been hours since she'd taken off the purple dress, wiped away the heavy eye makeup and shook her hair free of the fancy updo Veronica had concocted.

Specifically, she couldn't stop thinking about Jughead.

Why was he there? It'd been months since he transferred to South Side High. He'd made it abundantly clear that he didn't want anything to do with the North Side ever again.

He wanted nothing to do with her ever again.

So why was he there? Why did he show up at Riverdale High's prom, a place where he knew those two things would coincide?

She picked up her phone from where it sat on its charger. The time on her lock screen read "3:27 AM."

She unlocked the phone, tentatively pulling up her text messages, hitting the "compose new" button.

Her fingers hesitated over the touchscreen keys. Would he even be up this late?

Taking a deep breath, she typed in "Jughead Jones" into the recipient line.

_Hey. U awake?_

She tried to click the cancel button almost as soon as she hit send, but she couldn't get her thumb to move fast enough. Of course now her usually crummy cell phone service decided it wanted to be as fast as the phone company's ads claimed.

As she waited for a response she couldn't decide if she wanted, she had to fight back the urge to dig her nails into her flesh as anxiety bubbled in her chest.

It'd felt like an eternity, but in truth not even a minute passed before her screen lit up with his response.

_Yeah._

She stared at the screen.

On the one hand, she knew she wasn't over him, and she needed more space. On the other, though, she knew she wanted to talk to him about what had happened that night. She needed to know why he was there, why he defended her.

_Can we talk?_

A few seconds later, the screen lit up again.

_Be at your place in ten._

She wanted to offer that they meet at Pop's or somewhere that wasn't so private and vulnerable, but she knew to argue that was pointless. Besides, if she wanted to get any sleep, she needed to talk to him tonight, and if her mother caught her sneaking out, she'd be grounded until the second coming of Christ.

_Window's unlocked._

She debated whether or not this was a good idea. But it was too late now. He was already on the way.

It felt like an eternity before she heard the quiet creak of her window as it slid open. She could barely make him out as he shrugged out of the leather Serpent jacket that she was both bitterly resentful of and strangely attracted to, depending on the day.

He crossed the room, kicking off his shoes as he went, and lowered himself down onto the bed beside her.  The two of them laid there for a while, curled up on their sides, facing each other. It was quiet, save for the steady sounds of their breaths. Betty vaguely wondered if he could hear her heart pounding.

“What are you thinking?” Jughead finally broke into the thick silence.

“You were so angry, Juggie,” her voice quivered slightly. “I thought you were going to kill him. Or get another Serpent to, or…”

“I know.”

“I’m trying to figure out why you came to the dance tonight. Why you defended me, what it is that you want from me,” she swallowed, fiddling nervously with her flowery pillow, “I don’t get you Jug,” her eyes began to well, and she fought hard against the lump that had formed in her throat. “You told me to get out of your life. You told me to forget you. And then you show up?”

“I don’t get me, either,” he whispered.

“These past few weeks have been hell.”

“I know, for me too.”

“Jughead, I can’t do this anymore. I won’t.” she whispered quietly. “You need to decide what you want. Because I’m not going to just spend the rest of my life waiting around. I’ve pined uselessly before. I won’t do it again. It hurts too fucking much.”

“Betty, I--” he tried to avoid her eyes but she took his face in her hands, forcing him to look at her.

“ _I love you_ , Jughead.”

He searched her eyes, trying to look for some trace of doubt or dishonesty, things he was so used to seeing too often found in those he loved….his mom, his dad, even Archie sometimes. But there was nothing. It was just Betty. Honest, good, pure Betty. His Betty.

Before he could even process his own actions, his lips were on hers.

Their mouths moved against each other feverishly, hungrily, and he knew exactly what he wanted. He wanted her, for as long as she wanted him.


End file.
